Posted in Whathaveyou on May 20th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
That’s a pretty good bill, man. Seriously, who’s better than Acid King? Anyone? I just started watching the video at the bottom of this post and god damn, that band is awesome. You know 2019 is the 20th anniversary of Busse Woods and they’ve already announced some celebratory shows, but whenever you can see them, god damn, just go. And having them headline a night with Witch Mountain, Wizard Rifle and Warish (like a Nanotear showcase), with Nebula, Red Fang, Black Elk, Sasquatch, Holy Grove, Eagle Claw and American Sharks playing across the other two nights, the last night ending with the weirdness of putting Necrot and Fat Tony back to back? Well, yeah, like I said, that’s a pretty good bill. I won’t be there to see it, but if you are, I promise I’ll be jealous.
They’ve got tickets for sale now, and I don’t know how big these rooms are because they’re on the other end of the country, but I know that even looking at the list of bands I’m like, “Duh, I should go to that,” so I’d imagine even more people feel that way when, you know, it’s an actual possibility for them to do so.
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 26th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
I should’ve seen this one coming when Heavy Psych Sounds announced multiple venues for its Heavy Psych Sounds Fest this month in Europe — was it this weekend? — playing in three different cities with a changing lineup. Should’ve guessed this was going to be the direction it took. Even if I did though, I don’t think I’d have called a lineup badass enough to bring together Duel, Fatso Jetson, Nebula, Greenbeard, Heavy Temple, Mothership and The Freeks. Among others. Heavy Psych Sounds has become a powerhouse in Europe, promoting bands through the label, booking tours, hosting its fest, whatever it might be. A US package tour under the banner of Heavy Psych Sounds Fest isn’t a small step, but it’s a natural one for an imprint that’s doing such crucial work.
I hope it all goes off without a hitch and they do it on the regular.
From the PR wire:
Red Fang, Yawning Man, Mothership and more team up for inaugural HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST tour in the United States!
Influential heavy rock label HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS expands its sphere into North America, with live shows in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas and Austin.
Respected underground rock record label Heavy Psych Sounds is proud to announce the inaugural U.S. iteration of its ‘Heavy Psych Sounds Fest’ series. Set to kick off this May in Los Angeles (May 3), San Francisco (May 4-5), Dallas (May 10) and Austin, TX (May 11), the label tour will feature four separate mini-festivals in the four cities, each spotlighting an exclusive selection of Heavy Psych Sounds’ blue-chip roster, including live sets from trailblazing acts Fatso Jetson, Nebula and Yawning Man, as well as special guests Red Fang and more.
Headquartered in Rome, Italy, Heavy Psych Sounds specializes in presenting the best artists in the global heavy psych, doom, fuzz blues and space rock realms, and the Heavy Psych Sounds Fest series will be no exception, spotlighting the ever-growing label’s dedication to its craft. While the first HPS fests were held in Italy, the label has since extended its live reach into the UK, Belgium and the Netherlands with festivals in those territories. Now, Heavy Psych Sounds is set to bring the ROCK to the U.S. with the just-announced special shows. Each stop of the traveling festival tour will feature diverse lineups including both genre leaders and fast-rising acts, all ready to prove their place among the world’s best.
“Being able to finally launch the U.S. version of Heavy Psych Sounds Fest is a dream true,”says label owner Gabriele Fiori. “We’ve been working for a long time to properly break into the U.S. market and this is a clear sign that the hard work is paying off. We have so many great U.S. based bands on our roster that we needed this to happen for all of us. This tour run is a celebration of our growing U.S. presence, which we hope will keep continue to grow. We’re also very happy to have Red Fang as guests, headlining in two of the cities. We hope music fans will come out, support and enjoy these very special shows!”
HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST U.S. tour dates:
May 3 – Los Angeles, CA at The House of Machines Red Fang (special guest) + Nebula + Yawning Man + Duel + Fatso Jetson + House Of Broken Promises
May 4 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill Red Fang (special guest) + Yawning Man + Duel + The Freeks + Glitter Wizard
May 5 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill Nebula + Hot Lunch + Fatso Jetson + Banquet + Turn Me On Dead Man
May 10 – Dallas, TX at Lola’s Mothership + Duel + Ecstatic Vision + Crypt Trip + Wo Fat + Heavy Temple
May 11 – Austin, TX at The Lost Well Duel + Ecstatic Vision + Mothership + Crypt Trip + Greenbeard + Wo Fat + Heavy Temple
Tickets for the Heavy Psych Sounds Fest shows in Los Angeles, Dallas and Austin are on sale now. Tickets for the San Francisco HPS event will go on sale February 28.
Posted in Whathaveyou on October 4th, 2018 by JJ Koczan
Given all the road time they put in, I like the thought of Portland’s Red Fang doing a regional weekender in Oregon and Washington. Of course, it’s worth noting that their four-date run alongside R.I.P. follows a late-November/early-December West Coast stint with Telekinetic Yeti and precedes another three local shows to close out 2018. But that’s kind of how it goes with Red Fang, isn’t it? Since even before they signed to Relapse they’ve been a hard-touring band, and certainly as they continue to support 2016’s Only Ghosts(review here), that’s been the case all along. The way I see it, though, that only adds charm to the four-date set. That’s not a tour they’re doing because they have to, or because they’re promoting a release, or whatever. Those are shows they’re playing because they want to.
Maybe they’re tightening up new material with an eye toward recording sometime in 2019, or maybe they’re just getting out for the hell of it. Either way, the point is it’s easy to read this as something they have booked for fun. Maybe that’s the case and maybe not, but for Red Fang, who are a good time under the most workmanlike of circumstances, it seems only fitting they should have a bit of a blowout to close the year. They’ve earned it.
From the PR wire:
RED FANG: Announce Additional Late 2018 Tour Dates
Portland, OR rockers RED FANG announce the second leg of their US headlining tour dates at the end of the year. The brief tour begins December 12nd in Eugene, OR and ends December 15 in Bellingham, WA. Support will be provided by R.I.P. on all four dates. The tour rounds up RED FANG’s Winter 2018 tour dates featuring additional select support by Thunderpussy, Telekinetic Yeti, Wizard Rifle and Gaythiest. All confirmed tour dates are available below.
Additionally, RED FANG have shared a cover of the 1978 cult hit “Listen to the Sirens” originally performed by Gary Numan’s Tubeway Army. Watch the official music video directed by Ray Gordon.
The music video which is a departure from RED FANG’s usual antics, showcases the band playing the song in their rehearsal place while taking in the sites and sounds of their hometown, Portland.
Red Fang Tour Dates:
Oct 06 Atlanta, GA @ Slaughter Que 2018 (w/ ASG)
— All Dates Nov 29 – Dec 08 w/ Telekinetic Yeti —
Nov 29 San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel Nov 30 Los Angeles, CA @ Roxy Theatre Dec 01 Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriets Dec 02 Tustin, CA @ Marty’s On Newport Dec 03 Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge Dec 05 Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge Dec 06 Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge Dec 07 Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Lounge Dec 08 Boise, ID @ The Olympic
— All Dates Dec 12 – 15 w/ R.I.P. —
Dec 12 Eugene, OR @ HiFi Music Hall Dec 13 Bend, OR @ Domino Room Dec 14 Tacoma, WA @ Alma Mater Dec 15 Bellingham, WA @ Wild Buffalo
Dec 28 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom (w/ Thunderpussy & Gaythiest) Dec 29 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom (w/ R.I.P. & Wizard Rifle) Dec 31 Seattle, WA @ The Showbox (w/ Thunderpussy)
RED FANG is: John Sherman – Drums Aaron Beam – Bass, Vocals David Sullivan – Guitar Maurice Bryan Giles – Guitar, Vocals
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 23rd, 2018 by JJ Koczan
It’s only taken a few years for Psycho Las Vegas to establish itself as the premier underground festival in the US. All well and good. With 2018’s lineup, though, it’s time to start thinking of Psycho among the best in the world.
Sounds like too much? Consider Godflesh and Dimmu Borgir sharing a stage, both for exclusive West Coast appearances. Think of Sweden’s Witchcraft playing one of the two shows they’ll do in the US at Psycho, and ditto that for Japanese riff-madmen Church of Misery. Think of US exclusives from Lee Dorrian’s With the Dead, or Lucifer, whose Johanna Sadonis will also DJ the Center Bar. The commitment to up and coming underground acts local, domestic and foreign like Temple of Void, King Buffalo, Dreadnought, The Munsens and DVNE. Picture yourself watching Wolves in the Throne Room headline a pre-fest pool party with Elder, Young and in the Way, Dengue Fever, Fireball Ministry and Toke.
2018 is the year Psycho Las Vegas outclasses even itself and pushes further than it ever has in terms of stylistic reach (Integrity walks by and waves… at Boris) and the sheer power of its construction. If you’re looking for the future, you’ll find it in scumbag paradise.
Here’s the lineup:
Psycho Las Vegas 2018
Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Las Vegas 4455 Paradise Rd, Las Vegas, Nevada 89169
PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2018 lineup: DIMMU BORGIR (west of chicago exclusive) HELLACOPTERS (one of two shows to be played in the USA in 2018) SUNN 0))) GODFLESH (west of chicago exclusive) WITCHCRAFT (one of two shows to be played in the USA in 2018) ENSLAVED AMERICAN NIGHTMARE HIGH ON FIRE ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT RED FANG ZAKK SABBATH CHURCH OF MISERY (usa exclusive 2018 with exception to one other show in San Diego) TINARIWEN GOBLIN CKY VENOM INC EYEHATEGOD VOIVOD BORIS COVEN INTEGRITY PALLBEARER WITH THE DEAD (USA exclusive 2018) MONOLORD LUCIFER (USA exclusive 2018) ACID WITCH SURVIVE DOPETHRONE BIG BUSINESS UNEARTHLY TRANCE MUTOID MAN TODAY IS THE DAY HELMS ALEE SPIRIT ADRIFT BATUSHKA PRIMITIVE MAN DVNE ALL PIGS MUST DIE EIGHT BELLS WORMWITCH INDIAN NECROT HOMEWRECKER BRAIN TENTACLES CLOAK BLACK MARE MAGIC SWORD UADA TEMPLE OF VOID DREADNOUGHT WOLVHAMMER ASEETHE DISASTROID FORMING THE VOID VENOMOUS MAXIMUS GHASTLY SOUND HOWLING GIANT KING BUFFALO NIGHT HORSE THE MUNSENS GLAARE
Paradise Pool Pre Party
August 16th
WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM ELDER YOUNG AND IN THE WAY DENGUE FEVER FIREBALL MINISTRY TOKE
Center Bar DJ’s Andrew W.K. Nicke Andersson (Entombed/Hellacopters) Johanna Sadonis (Lucifer)
Posted in Reviews on February 5th, 2018 by JJ Koczan
Before the four-piece launched into ‘Vote with a Bullet,’ Corrosion of Conformity frontman Pepper Keenan introduced the song by saying they wrote it a long time ago but that it had come back around full-circle — an obvious reference to political dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs; elected officials, Donald Trump and so on — and the general frustration and disaffection that dissatisfaction engenders. He’s right though. Considering that song, which appeared on 1991’s Blind and was the first track for which Keenan took on a lead-vocalist role in addition to playing guitar, was written during the post-Reagan Bush years, Gulf War I and all that, not much has changed. Oh, except now they’re talking about strategically deploying a modernized and rebuilt nuclear arsenal. “Forgive and forget? Fuck no. Next time I’m voting with an atom bomb.”
It had been at least 12 years and more like 15 since the last time I was at the Palladium for a show. That part of Worcester — which everyone who played had clearly long since been schooled to pronounce as “wooster” — hadn’t changed much. Some luxury commuter condos, or were they dorms, and that’s about it. The bill was three bands, with Portland, Oregon, exports Red Fang opening, C.O.C. in the middle supporting their recently-issued No Cross No Crown (review here) long-player on Nuclear Blast, and Zakk Wylde‘s Black Label Society as the headliner, pulling in a drunken Thursday night Massachusetts crowd populated by Sam Black Church and Pantera t-shirts very much of a dudely persuasion. My general goal for that kind of thing is not to get punched. I didn’t get punched — so, win.
The line was around the building to get in before Red Fang went on, and I could see their U-Haul and trailer where they’d loaded in their gear, which only emphasized to me how hard those dudes have worked on the road and for how long. We’re almost a decade removed from their 2009 self-titled, and it’s been seven years since they made their debut on Relapse with 2011’s Murder the Mountains (review here), from which “Wires” and “Number Thirteen” were set highlights, and they’re still slogging it out in a work van and a U-Haul. I have no doubt they have their processes and routines nailed down at this point, but still, the sheer amount of energy they’ve put in made their stage presence all the more impressive as they started off the show, with John Sherman pounding away on drums behind bassist/vocalist Aaron Beam front and center, flanked on one side by guitarist David Sullivan and the other by guitarist/vocalist Maurice Bryan Giles.
Particularly for this tour, a lot of the focus is on frontmen, and Pepper Keenan and Zakk Wylde — surrounded by massively talented individuals as they are — are significantly charismatic comparison points, but in addition to being part of a different generation, Red Fang have their own style of presentation, more geared to what the whole band brings than one individual as a focal point. Part of that is Giles and Beam sharing vocals as effectively as they do, part of it is Sullivan being so dug into and immersed in what he’s doing on guitar and part of it is how much fun Sherman looks like he’s having while he’s playing, but as they ran through “Prehistoric Dog” at the end of the set, the impression was prevalent all the same: they’re very much a complete group, and they did not at all become one by happenstance. Red Fang‘s is a professionalism earned the hard way: in that van down around the side of the building outside the Palladium.
Yes, C.O.C. were selling signed copies of No Cross No Crown at $20 a pop, and yes, I bought one. Sorry, I know it’s like nine bucks on Amazon, but screw it, I’ve only listened to the band since I was 11; I can shell out a little extra for the signatures. And sure enough, the front cover in silver marker has the markings of Keenan, bass hero Mike Dean, guitarist Woody Weatherman and drummer Reed Mullin, the latter of whom was absent from the show owing reportedly to a surgery-requiring knee surgery to be repaired, and filling in was drum tech Jon Green, also currently tenured in long-running Scottish folk rockers The Waterboys.
They kept the lights low on him and low in general, but the dude wailed and especially in a late jam as they played through “Clean My Wounds,” showed himself to be more than capable of holding down the fort until Mullin recovers. I happened to be standing by the table when they played and when I asked the person selling C.O.C.‘s merch who it was, she said Mullin‘s knee was, “the size of a grapefruit.” Obviously all the best to him for a speedy recovery.
It was a relatively quick set, just 10 songs: “Bottom Feeder (El Que Come Abajo)” leading into “The Luddite,” which was the only cut aired from the new album, “Seven Days” from 1994’s Deliverance (discussed here), the aforementioned “Vote with a Bullet,” which appeared on 1991’s transitional offering Blind, “Long Whip, Big America” from 1996’s Wiseblood (discussed here), “Who’s Got the Fire” and “13 Angels” from 2000’s America’s Volume Dealer, and a closing salvo of the chug-nodding “Broken Man,” “Albatross” and “Clean My Wounds,” all from Deliverance.
Hard to argue with the premise — Clearly they know their crowd — but I don’t think there would’ve been a revolt of boozed-up Massholes had a song like “Cast the First Stone” or “Wolf Named Crow” — the other front-loaded singles from No Cross No Crown past “The Luddite” — been included, let alone something like “Paranoid Opioid” from 2005’s In the Arms of God. But it wasn’t C.O.C.‘s show, ultimately, and one assumes time was a factor. Judging from all the various BLS logo paraphernalia adorned on t-shirts, bandannas, tattoos, etc., on the audience, a substantial portion of the room was there to see the headliner.
I was not, frankly. Nothing necessarily against Black Label Society — they have their thing, they do it, and I certainly had my time as a fan circa 1919 Eternal — but this was my first night out since the birth of my son three months ago and I was new-parent-anxious to get back home. After C.O.C. played, a weekday morning DJ from local rock radio institution WAAF got on stage to plug the headliner set to come and to thank any troops in the crowd for their service, lest the evening go untinged by jingoism. People cheered as they will.
After a while, Wylde and company dropped their huge banner from the front of the stage, lit up the lights and smoke release that would’ve been fire pre-The Station and launched into “Genocide Junkies” and “Funeral Bell,” the band — Wylde, bassist John DeServio, guitarist Dario Lorina and drummer Jeff Fabb — all spot-on in pro presentation, side-to-side headbanging, raising picks in the air as though each pinch harmonic was an offering to the gods of metal themselves, half-Viking, half-biker, all dude. The crowd ate it up like riff-driven clam chowder with Maine lobster still to come.
On my way out, one of the security personnel took the time to tell me to look both ways while I crossed the empty street, which I did. I then heard her take credit for saving my life to one of her coworkers. I guess it was that kind of night at the office. Anyway, I’d just seen Red Fang and C.O.C. put on killer sets one after the other, and I had a thermos of coffee waiting for me in the car for the ride home, so the effort was appreciated.
Thanks for reading. Click any of the images above to see larger versions.
Posted in Whathaveyou on September 1st, 2017 by JJ Koczan
This weekend, Portland, OR, heavy rock forerunners Red Fang take part in Crucialfest in Salt Lake City and Bumbershoot in Seattle. One fest features Radio Moscow, SubRosa and Earthless, the other Weezer, Lorde and Haim. Such is the magic of Red Fang at this point in their career. They can pretty much play to whatever crowd you want to put in front of them. They’ve got newly announced West Coast dates as well supporting last year’s Only Ghosts (review here) on Relapse, and that’s before they head to Europe to share a bill with Mastodon and Russian Circles. Red Fang, if you didn’t know, are a big friggin’ deal.
The PR wire knows it, and so, we all know it:
RED FANG Announce Headline West Coast Tour Dates
Portland rockers RED FANG have announced the California Ghost Rush headline tour in October. The tour commences October 17 in Eugene, OR and ends October 28 in Los Angeles, CA. Direct support will be provided by Bloodclot and Fireball Ministry on select dates. RED FANG is also set to perform this weekend at Crucial Fest in Salt Lake City, UT and Bumbershoot in Seattle, WA. Additionally, the band will provide direct support for Mastodon in the UK and Europe this Fall. All confirmed tour dates are listed below.
RED FANG’s latest album Only Ghosts is out now on CD/LP/Digital via Relapse Records. Physical packages and digital orders are available via Relapse.com HERE and Bandcamp HERE.
RED FANG Tour Dates: Sep 02 Salt Lake City, UT Crucial Fest Sep 03 Seattle, WA Bumbershoot
Oct 17 Eugene, OR HiFi Music Hall Oct 19 Sacramento, CA Harlow’s * Oct 20 Petaluma, CA Mystic Theatre * Oct 21 San Francisco, CA Slim’s * Oct 23 San Diego, CA Cashbah Oct 25 Long Beach, CA Alex’s Bar ^ Oct 26 Phoenix, AZ Crescent Ballroom ^ Oct 27 Las Vegas, NV Beauty Bar ^ Oct 28 Los Angeles, CA Troubadour ^ * W/ Bloodclot ^ W/ Fireball Ministry
— All Dates Nov 13 – Dec 10 With Mastodon & Russian Circles — Nov 13 Vienna, AT Arena Nov 14 Herford, DE X Nov 15 Brussels, BE AB Nov 17 Amsterdam, NL Melkweg Nov 19 Stockholm, SE Munchen Brewery Nov 20 Olso, NO Sentrum Scene Nov 22 Copenhagen, DK VEGA Main Hall Nov 23 Leipzig, DE Haus Auensee Nov 24 Prague, CZ Lucerna Music Bar Nov 25 Munich, DE Tonhalle Nov 27 Milan, IT Live Club Nov 28 Zurich, CH Komplex Nov 29 Paris, FR Elysee Montmarte Nov 30 Luxembourg, LU Rockhal Club Dec 02 Cardiff, UK Great Hall Dec 04 Wolverhampton, UK Civic Hall Dec 05 Nottingham, UK Rock City Dec 06 Newcastle, UK Northumbria University Dec 07 Glasgow, UK Barrowland Dec 09 Manchester, UK Academy Dec 10 London, UK Brixton Academy
Posted in Whathaveyou on January 27th, 2017 by JJ Koczan
Not at all surprised to find Portland, Oregon, heavy rock forerunners Red Fang heading out to support last year’s Only Ghosts (review here), and hey, March is as good a time as any. It just seems kind of surprising to me that as the band head out yet again on a US run — they pretty much head out everywhere, all the time — the list is shorter than I’m used to seeing from them. About two weeks on the road instead of a month. Can’t help but wonder if more dates are to come, perhaps including stops at SXSW not announced yet for this or than contractual reason? Or if they’re shortly headed abroad for other appearances. I don’t know anything, of course, I’m just wondering what’s the impetus behind what, on a Red Fangular scale, is a quickie run.
Sorry. Not my intention to ask a question and leave it sitting there, but I actually don’t know. If you do, kindly fill my ignorant ass in. Thanks in advance, and cool for the cities that get to see Red Fang this time out. Maybe they missed Petaluma on the last tour or something. Right on.
From the PR wire:
RED FANG Announce US Tour Dates
Portland rockers Red Fang have announced a new round of U.S. headlining tour dates in support of their recently released album, Only Ghosts. Big Jesus will provide opening support on select dates. All confirmed tour dates below.
RED FANG Tour Dates:
All dates Mar 03 to 11 with Big Jesus Mar 03 Sacramento, CA Goldfield Mar 04 Petaluma, CA Mystic Theatre Mar 05 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst Atrium Mar 06 Santa Barbara, CA Velvet Jones Mar 08 Albuquerque, NM Launchpad Mar 10 Fort Collins, CO The Aggie Mar 11 Colorado Springs, CO The Black Sheep Mar 13 Billings, MT Pub Station* Mar 15 Spokane, WA The Pin* * No Big Jesus
The Portland–based rock band worked with producer Ross Robinson (At The Drive-In, The Cure, Slipknot) and mixer Joe Barresi (Queens of the Stone Age, Tool, Melvins) on the 10-song album.
In the week’s leading up to Only Ghosts’ release, the Portland-based rock band also created a tremendously clever video about wronged comic book collectors seeking Predator-style vengeance (“Shadows”), and partnered with Stumptown Coffee Roasters for a tour only blend dubbed “The Deep” after the song of the same name and lent their music to Pabst Blue Ribbon’s retro pinball machine, The Can Crusher.
Only Ghosts is available now, as are physical bundles.
Posted in Features on January 1st, 2017 by JJ Koczan
The poll is closed, the results are counted and the top 20 albums of 2016 have been chosen. Hard to argue with the list as it’s shown up over the course of the past month, so I won’t try. Instead, let me just say thanks to incredible amount of participants who contributed this year.
All told, between Dec. 1 and Dec. 31, 612 people added their picks to the proceedings, compared to 388 in last year’s poll. Considering how much that number blew my mind on Jan. 1, 2016, I’m sure you can imagine how I feel about adding another 200-plus lists to the pot. In short, I’m astounded, deeply humbled and so, so, so grateful. I feel like we got enough of a sampling this year to give a genuinely representative showing for where people’s heads have been at, so thank you if you were a part of it.
Thank you as well as always to Slevin for running the poll’s back end and tabulating the results. As ever, the weighting system is one in which a 1-4 ranking is worth five points, 5-8 worth four, 9-12 worth three, 13-16 worth two and 17-20 worth one. You’ll find that list (plus some honorable mentions) below, followed by the raw-vote tally.
And after the jump, as has become the tradition, are the full lists of everyone who submitted, alphabetized by name. I’m in there too. It’s a huge amount to wade through, and even if you thought you heard everything in 2016, it should be more than enough to keep you busy for the next year.
One last note: I’m no statistician. Please allow for these numbers to change over the next couple days on some small level.
Let’s go:
Top 20 of 2016 — Weighted Results
1. Wo Fat, Midnight Cometh (375 points)
2. Greenleaf, Rise Above the Meadow (368)
3. Elephant Tree, Elephant Tree (324)
4. Asteroid, III (302)
5. Brant Bjork, Tao of the Devil (295)
6. Gozu, Revival (274)
7. Neurosis, Fires Within Fires (253)
8. King Buffalo, Orion (244)
9. Mars Red Sky, Apex III (Praise for the Burning Soul) (238)
10. Conan, Revengeance (232)
11. Cough, Still They Pray (228)
12. Holy Grove, Holy Grove (218)
13. SubRosa, For this We Fought the Battle of Ages (213)
14. Truckfighters, V (206)
15. Blood Ceremony, Lord of Misrule (200)
16. Khemmis, Hunted (192)
16. Red Fang, Only Ghosts (192)
17. Inter Arma, Paradise Gallows (181)
18. Witchcraft, Nucleus (174)
19. Opeth, Sorceress (173)
20. Church of Misery, And then there Were None (159)
Honorable mention to:
Causa Sui, Return to Sky (157)
Goatess, II: Purgatory Under New Management (157)
Black Mountain, IV (148)
Mos Generator, Abyssinia (144)
Wretch, Wretch (140)
Look at those tallies for number one and two. That race was close all month. Wo Fat kept out front for the most part, but Greenleaf kept it interesting and Elephant Tree’s debut snuck in there at third, which I love to see, both because it’s their first album and because that record was indeed so great. King Buffalo, another debut, also made the top 10, underscoring those two as bands to watch, and though Brant Bjork, Conan, Asteroid, Neurosis, Gozu and Mars Red Sky might be more expected names, they still certainly delivered excellent records, so again, nothing to fight with here. Things flesh out a bit in the 10-20 range, but I don’t think there’s one album on this list you could call is “miss.”
Top 20 of 2016 — Raw Votes
1. Wo Fat, Midnight Cometh (109)
2. Greenleaf, Rise Above the Meadow (92)
3. Brant Bjork, Tao of the Devil (87)
4. Elephant Tree, Elephant Tree (82)
5. Asteroid, III (80)
6. Gozu, Revival (76)
7. Conan, Revengeance (73)
8. Cough, Still They Pray (70)
9. Mars Red Sky, Apex III (Praise for the Burning Soul) (68)
10. King Buffalo, Orion (67)
11. Truckfighters, V (62)
12. Red Fang, Only Ghosts (61)
13. Khemmis, Hunted (60)
14. Blood Ceremony, Lord of Misrule (59)
14. SubRosa, For this We Fought the Battle of Ages (59)
15. Holy Grove, Holy Grove (58)
16. Church of Misery, And then there Were None (53)
17. Inter Arma, Paradise Gallows (49)
17. Witchcraft, Nucleus (49)
18. Opeth, Sorceress (47)
19. Mos Generator, Abyssinia (45)
20. Black Mountain, IV (44)
20. Causa Sui, Return to Sky (44)
20. Wretch, Wretch (44)
Honorable mention to:
Goatess, II: Purgatory Under New Management (43)
Mondo Drag, The Occultation of Light (43)
Geezer, Geezer (41)
Crowbar, The Serpent Only Lies (41)
Gojira, Magma (37)
Slomatics, Future Echo Returns (36)
Graves at Sea, The Curse that Is… (35)
Black Rainbows, Stellar Prophecy (33)
Beastmaker, Lusus Naturae (32)
Vokonis, Olde One Ascending (31)
Left a few more honorable mentions in the raw-vote count, just for fun and so you could get more of a feel beyond the top 20 itself, which you’ll notice has a couple ties in it as the raw votes usually do and reorganizes a bit from the weighted results. One and two remain the same, however, and in the same order, and you’ll see Wo Fat was the only album that scored more than 100 votes on its own. As a whole, there were over 2,400 separate entries for albums this year, which is by far the most spread out that the voting has ever been. Frankly, with so many people involved and such a variety of stuff being voted on, I’m amazed anyone managed to agree on anything at all, but of course they did and once again a stellar list is the result.
—
Well, Happy New Year.
Before I go, thanks again to Slevin for the work put into running the back end of this site and this poll particularly. I show up with the finish lists, but it’s his code that makes it happen, and his efforts are appreciated more than I can say. Dude has never asked me for anything in the nearly eight years I’ve been a constant pain in his ass.
After the jump, you’ll find everybody’s list, alphabetized by name. Please enjoy browsing. I hope you find something awesome, because there’s certainly plenty in there that qualifies, and if you see something that looks like it appears often enough that it should be included in one or both of the counts above, let me know in the comments.
